JP2007241567A - Device management system and its control method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To easily establish a mutual link of Web pages of a management device and a managed device. <P>SOLUTION: A management device 101 managing a device 102 stores a management log of device management information relating to the device 102, and the management information is provided for an outside from a Web server. When a client performs an update operation for the management information, the management device 101 updates the management information owned by the device 102 in accordance with the updated content, adds a page showing the content of the update operation to the management log, and then transmits a ling request for adding a link to the added page to the device 102. The device 102 which has received the request adds summary information described in the received link request and the page including the link indicated by an URL to device log information. The device log information is also disclosed through the Web server of the device 102. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a management apparatus and a system including a device managed by the management apparatus.

  In recent years, many information devices have been connected to networks, and various applications have been made. In particular, the spread of WWW (World Wide Web: also simply called the web) is remarkable. Various image processing devices and management devices that manage the devices have a web server function, and also have a web application function that enables browsing and setting of various information from a web browser. . In addition, in a device equipped with such a web application, the convenience is improved by providing a link from the web page of the management device to the web page of the managed device, or conversely from the web page of the managed device to the web page of the management device. There is something that is.

When it is detected that a device is connected to the network, it is determined whether the detected device can generate a link. When it is determined that a link can be generated, a management apparatus that transmits link information to the management apparatus to the device has been proposed (see, for example, Patent Document 1). Patent Document 1 also proposes a managed device that generates a link to a management device when link information is received.
JP 2002-288056 A

  As described above, by providing a link between the management device and the web application of the managed device managed by the management device, a highly convenient system can be provided to the user.

  However, the link provided to both sides is only a link to a specific page (in many cases, the top page of the partner's web application), and it was not possible to dynamically generate a link for an arbitrary page. . Therefore, even if a link is traced from the web page of the managed device to the web page of the management device, the target page must be searched from there.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above conventional example, and an object thereof is to solve the above problems. More specifically, when a setting change of a managed device is performed from the management apparatus, the management program records information on the setting change in the management apparatus and registers a link to the information in the managed apparatus, triggered by the setting change. The purpose is to provide.

  Further, when a setting change of a managed device is performed from a client, a management program is provided for recording information on the setting change in the managed device and registering a link to the information in the management device, triggered by the setting change. For the purpose.

In order to solve the above problems, the present invention comprises the following arrangement. That is, in response to a link request, by a computer connected to a managed device having a function of recording document information including link information for a specified link destination and a web server function of providing the document information to a web client A program to be executed,
Recording means for recording information related to the managed device;
Web server means for providing said information to a web client;
The computer is caused to function as a transmission unit that transmits a link request for information related to the management target device recorded by the recording unit to the management target device.

  According to the present invention, the link information registered in the managed device enables easy access to information related to the setting change of the managed device recorded in the management device, and the user can easily browse the information. Also, by recording detailed information on the management apparatus side, abundant information can be provided without squeezing the storage capacity on the managed device side.

  Also, the link information registered in the management apparatus makes it easy to access information related to the setting change of the managed device recorded in the managed device from the management apparatus, and the user can easily browse the information.

<System configuration>
The best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the overall configuration of an image processing system according to an embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 1, the image processing system includes image processing apparatuses (managed apparatuses) 110 and 120, a management apparatus 101, and a desktop computer 102 connected to each other via a network 100. The network 100 may be any network as long as a TCP / IP network can be constructed.

  Since the image processing apparatuses 110 and 120 have the same configuration, the image processing apparatus 110 will be described here. The image processing apparatus 110 includes a scanner 113 as an image input device, a printer 114 as an image output device, a control unit 111, and an operation unit 112 as a user interface.

  The scanner 113, the printer 114, and the operation unit 112 are each connected to the control unit 111 and controlled by commands from the control unit 111. The control unit 111 is connected to the network 100 and communicates with the management apparatus 101 and the desktop computer 102.

  The management apparatus 101 is an apparatus that communicates with the image processing apparatuses 110 and 120 via the network 100 to manage acquisition and setting of various setting values of the image processing apparatuses 110 and 120. The management apparatus 101 is a general-purpose computer, and includes a processor, a memory, an external storage, and an interface device such as a keyboard and a display. In the management apparatus 101, a software module called a management utility 1012 is installed in the web server 1011 and functions as a management apparatus by executing these. The management utility 1012 is implemented as a so-called CGI program that executes a script described on a web page provided by a web server, for example, and realizes a web application for managing the image processing apparatus together with the web server 1011. The management utility 1012 records a setting change record of the image processing apparatus 110 in the management log 1013. The record of the setting change can be browsed by the web server 1011 from the web browser 1021 executed by the desktop computer 102 via the network 100. That is, the management log 1013 is described in a markup language such as HTML or XML, and link information can be described therein.

  The desktop computer 102 is an information processing apparatus that is regularly used by a user, and has a configuration of a general-purpose computer. It stores application programs used by the user, user data, and the like. An application used by the user includes a web browser 1021. By executing the web browser 1021 on the desktop computer 102, it is possible to browse and operate the web applications provided by the image processing apparatuses 110 and 120 and the management apparatus 101.

  Although a case where only two image processing apparatuses are connected to the network 100 is shown here, more devices may be connected. The device managed by the management apparatus may be a printer apparatus that does not have the scanner 113. The management apparatus 101 manages these devices.

<Software configuration of image processing apparatus>
FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of software executed by each of the image processing apparatuses 110 and 120. A user interface (UI) module 201 is a module that mediates between an apparatus and a user operation when an operator performs various operations and settings on the image processing apparatus. In accordance with the operation of the operator, this module transfers input information to various modules, which will be described later, and requests processing or sets data.

  An address book (Address-Book) module 202 is a database module that manages data transmission destinations, communication destinations, and the like. The data managed by the address book module 202 is added, deleted, and acquired in accordance with an operation command from the UI module 201. Further, the address book module 202 gives data transmission / communication destination information to each module described later by an operator's operation.

  A web server (Web-Server) module 203 notifies management information of the image processing apparatus to the web client in response to a request from the web client (for example, the desktop computer 102). The management information includes an integrated transmission unit (Universal-Send) module 204, a remote copy scan (Remote-Copy-Scan) module 209, a remote copy print (Remote-Copy-Print) module 210, and a control API (Control-API). ) Obtained via the module 218 and notified to the web client via an HTTP module 212, a TCP / IP communication module 216, and a network driver (Network-Driver) 217, which will be described later.

  The integrated transmission module (Universal-Send) module 204 is a module that manages data distribution. This module distributes data designated by the operator via the UI module 201 to the communication (output) destination designated in the same manner. When the operator instructs the generation of distribution data using the scanner function of the apparatus, the apparatus is operated via the control API module 218 described later to generate data.

  The P550 module 205 is a module that is included in the integrated transmission module 204 and is executed when a printer is designated as an output destination. An e-mail (E-mail) module 206 is included in the integrated transmission module 204 and is executed when an e-mail address is designated as a communication destination. The DB module 207 is a module that is included in the integrated transmission module 204 and is executed when a database is designated as an output destination. The DP module 208 is a module that is included in the integrated transmission module 204 and is executed when an image processing apparatus similar to this apparatus is designated as an output destination.

  A remote copy scan (Remote-Copy-Scan) module 209 reads image information using the scanner function of the image processing apparatus, and outputs the read image information to another image processing apparatus connected via a network or the like. By doing so, this is a module that realizes a copy function originally realized by itself using a plurality of image processing apparatuses.

  A remote copy print (Remote-Copy-Print) module 210 outputs image information obtained by another image processing apparatus connected via a network or the like using the printer function of the image processing apparatus. By doing so, this is a module that realizes a copy function originally realized by itself using a plurality of image processing apparatuses.

  A web browser module 211 reads and displays information on various websites (homepages) on the Internet or an intranet. It also provides a web-pull print function that acquires website information and prints it out.

  The HTTP module 212 is used when the image processing apparatus 110 performs communication using HTTP (Hyper Text Transfer Protocol). The HTTP module 212 provides a communication function to the web server module 203 and the web browser module 211 using the TCP / IP communication module 216. This module supports various protocols used on the web such as HTTP, and also provides a communication function using a protocol corresponding to security.

  The lpr module 213 provides a communication function to the P550 module 205 in the integrated transmission module 204 using a TCP / IP communication module 216 described later.

  The SMTP module 214 uses the TCP / IP communication module 216 to provide a communication function to the e-mail module 206 in the integrated transmission module 204.

  A SLM (Saltation-Manager) module 215 uses the TCP / IP communication module 216 to communicate with the DB module 207, the DP module 208, the remote copy scan module 209, and the remote copy print module 210 in the integrated transmission module 204. I will provide a.

  The TCP / IP communication module 216 uses the network driver 217 to provide a network communication function to the various modules described above. The network driver 217 controls a part physically connected to the network.

  The control API 218 provides an upstream module such as the integrated transmission module 204 with an interface to a downstream module such as a job manager (Job-Manager) module 219. As a result, the dependency relationship between the upstream and downstream modules is reduced, and the applicability of each can be improved.

  The job manager module 219 interprets various processes instructed from the various modules described above via the control API 218, and gives instructions to the modules (220, 224, 226) described later. The job manager module 219 centrally manages hardware processing executed in the image processing apparatus.

  A codec manager (CODEC-Manager) module 220 manages and controls various compression / decompression of data in the process instructed by the job manager module 219.

  The JPEG codec (JPEG-CODEC) module 222 scans data read in the scan process executed by the job manager module 219 or the scan manager module 224 or the print process executed by the print manager (Print-Manager) module 226. Performs JPEG compression and JPEG expansion processing of print data.

  The MMR codec (MMR-CODEC) module 223 performs MMR compression and print data of the read data in the scan process executed by the job manager module 219 and the scan manager module 224 or the print process executed by the print manager module 226. The MMR expansion process is performed.

  An information-embedded image codec (IEI-CODEC) module 229 performs decoding of information embedded in read image data and embedding of information in print image data in scan processing or print processing. The scan process is executed by the job manager module 219 and the scan manager module 224, and the print process is executed by the print manager module 226. The information is embedded in the image data using an encoding technique such as a barcode or a digital watermark (digital watermark). In addition, character recognition for recognizing characters in image data by image region separation and OCR technology and converting them to text data is also supported as a kind of decoding technology. Furthermore, conversion from text to image data using a raster image processor and overlay (overlay) of the converted image data and original image data are also supported as a kind of encoding technology (information embedding technology).

  A scan manager (Scan-Manager) module 224 manages and controls scan processing instructed by the job manager module 219.

  The SCSI driver 225 handles communication between the scan manager module 224 and the scanner unit internally connected to the image processing apparatus.

  A print manager (Print-Manager) module 226 manages and controls print processing instructed by the job manager module 219.

  An engine interface (Engine-I / F) module 227 provides an interface between the print manager module 226 and the printing unit.

  The parallel port driver 228 provides an I / F for outputting data to an output device (not shown) via the parallel port.

The JAVA (registered trademark) virtual machine 230 is connected to the JAVA (registered trademark) on the image processing apparatus.
Includes an interpreter to run the program. The JAVA (registered trademark) VM 230 manages and executes an additional application that is described in the JAVA (registered trademark) program and can be dynamically added / deleted.

  The log manager 250 is a program that is incorporated into the web server 203 and executed, and the device log information 251 is managed by the log manager 250. In the device log information 251, in response to a link request from the management apparatus 101, link information received together with the link request is additionally accumulated in an HTML file of a remote UI described later. As the log manager 250, a commercially available web blog system (for example, a movable type of Six Apart) can be used in the present embodiment. In FIG. 2, the device log information is shown separately from the HTML file provided to the network by the web server 203, but it may of course be in the same storage location.

<Hardware configuration of image processing apparatus>
FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a hardware configuration of the image processing apparatus 110. The control unit 111 is connected to the scanner 113 serving as an image input device and the printer 114 serving as an image output device on the one hand, and connected to the LAN 100 or a public line (WAN) on the other hand, thereby inputting and outputting image information and device information. Etc.

  The CPU 301 is a controller that controls the entire control unit 111. A RAM 302 is a system work memory used for the CPU 301 to operate. The RAM 302 is also an image memory for temporarily storing image data. A ROM 303 is a boot ROM, and stores a system boot program. An HDD 304 is a hard disk drive and stores system software and image data.

  The operation unit I / F 306 controls an interface with the operation unit (UI) 112 and outputs image data to be displayed on the operation unit 112 to the operation unit 112. Further, it plays a role of transmitting information input by the user via the operation unit 112 to the CPU 301.

  A network interface (Network I / F) 308 manages connection with the LAN 100 and inputs / outputs information to / from the LAN 100. A modem (MODEM) 309 manages connection with the public line and inputs / outputs information to / from the public line. The above devices are arranged on the system bus 307.

  An image bus interface (Image Bus I / F) 305 is a bus bridge that connects a system bus 307 and an image bus 310 that transfers image data at high speed and converts a data structure. The image bus 310 is configured by a PCI bus or I15E1394. The following devices are arranged on the image bus 310.

  A raster image processor (RIP) 311 expands the PDL code transmitted from the network into a bitmap image. A device I / F unit 312 connects the scanner 113 and printer 114, which are image input / output devices, to the control unit 111, and performs synchronous / asynchronous conversion of image data.

  A scanner image processing unit 313 corrects, processes, and edits input image data. The printer image processing unit 314 performs correction, resolution conversion, and the like according to the performance of the printer 114 for the print output image data. An image rotation unit 315 rotates image data. The image compression unit 316 performs JPEG compression / decompression processing on multi-valued image data, and JBIG, MMR, and MH compression / decompression processing on binary image data.

  FIG. 4 is a perspective view illustrating an appearance of the image processing apparatus 110. A scanner 113, which is an image input device, illuminates an image on paper as a document and scans a CCD line sensor (not shown) to generate raster image data.

  When the user sets document sheets on the tray 406 of the document feeder 405 and instructs the start of reading in the operation unit 112, the CPU 301 of the control unit 111 gives an instruction to the scanner 113. In response to the instruction, the document sheets set on the tray 406 are fed one by one, and the scanner 113 performs a document image reading operation.

  The printer 114, which is an image output device, is a part that prints raster image data on paper. The system includes an electrophotographic system using a photosensitive drum and a photosensitive belt, and an inkjet system in which an image is directly printed on a sheet by ejecting ink from a micro nozzle array, and any system may be used. Note that the printing operation is activated by an instruction from the CPU 301.

  The printer 114 has a plurality of paper feed stages so that different paper sizes or different paper orientations can be selected, and there are paper cassettes 401, 402, and 403 corresponding thereto. The paper discharge tray 404 receives paper that has been printed.

  FIG. 5 is a plan view showing the configuration of the operation unit 112 of the image processing apparatus 110. The LCD display unit 501 has a configuration in which a touch panel sheet 502 is pasted on an LCD (liquid crystal display device). The display unit 501 displays an operation screen and soft keys of the image processing apparatus 110, and when the displayed key is pressed, transmits position information indicating the pressed position to the CPU 301 of the control unit 111.

  A start key 505 is a key operated when starting a reading operation of a document image. At the center of the start key 505, there is a green and red two-color LED display unit 506, which indicates whether or not the start key 505 can be operated. A stop key 503 is a key operated when it is desired to stop the operation of the image processing apparatus 110 that is operating. The ID key 507 is a key operated when inputting the user ID of the user. The reset key 504 is a key operated when initializing settings from the operation unit 112.

  FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing the internal configuration of the operation unit 112 and the operation unit I / F 306 of the image processing apparatus 110 in correspondence with the internal configuration of the control unit 111. As described above, the operation unit 112 is connected to the system bus 307 via the operation unit I / F 306. A CPU 301, RAM 302, ROM 303, and HDD 304 are connected to the system bus 307. The CPU 301 generally controls access to various devices connected to the system bus 307 based on control programs stored in the ROM 303 and the HDD 304. The CPU 301 reads input information from the scanner 113 connected via the device I / F 312 and outputs an image signal as output information to the printer 114 connected via the device I / F 312. A RAM 302 functions as a main memory, work area, and the like for the CPU 301.

  User input information from the touch panel 502 and various hard keys 503, 504, 505, and 507 is passed to the CPU 301 via the input port 601. The CPU 301 generates display screen data based on the contents of the user input information and the control program, and outputs the display screen data to the LCD display unit 501 via the output port 602 that controls the screen output device. Further, the two-color LED display unit 506 is controlled as necessary.

  FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an example of a standard operation screen displayed on the operation unit 112 of the image processing apparatus 110. The button group arranged in the uppermost part 701 in FIG. 7 is a button group for selecting one from various functions provided by the image processing apparatus 110.

  The copy function is a function for printing a document image data scanned and read by the scanner 113 by the printer 114 to obtain a copy of the document. The transmission function is a function for transmitting original image data read by the scanner 113 and image data stored in the HDD 304 to various output destinations. As the output destination, there are various output destinations that can be transmitted by various protocols via the network interface 308, and various output destinations that can be transmitted by a protocol such as facsimile via the modem 309. A plurality of output destinations can be selected from these and transmitted.

  The box function is a function for browsing, editing, printing, and transmitting document files such as image data and code data stored in the HDD 304. The document file stored in the HDD 304 includes document image data read by the scanner 113. In addition, it includes data downloaded via the network interface 308, data accumulated from print data received from other devices via the network interface 308, facsimile data received from other devices via the modem 309, and the like. The box function can be used as an electronic mailbox in the user's office environment. Further, by delaying the print output on the paper until the password is input, it can also be used as a secure print that increases the confidentiality of the PDL print job. The extended function is a function for calling various extended functions such as locking the scanner 113 for use from an external device. The browser function is a function for browsing a website.

  An intermediate portion 702 in FIG. 7 displays an operation screen when the copy function is selected. 7 is a status display area, and displays various messages such as information on each function of the image processing apparatus 110 and the apparatus itself to the user regardless of the function selected in the uppermost part 701. To do.

<Description of remote UI>
Next, a remote UI (Remote User Interface) that is one of the functions that operate in the web server module 203 will be described. The remote UI acquires and sets various types of information (device information, function information, status information, holding information, etc.) related to the image processing device from a web browser outside the image processing device, or prints and transmits to the image processing device (Universal-Send). This is a function for performing the above operations.

  The web server module 203 of the image processing apparatus 110 is connected to the network via the HTTP module 212 and the TCP / IP module 216, and performs communication with the web browser using HTTP. The user can use the function of the remote UI by accessing the image processing apparatus 110 using the web browser 1021 from, for example, the desktop computer 102 connected to the network.

  The HDD 2004 of the image processing apparatus shown in FIG. 2 stores a resource file group that is a file for displaying various web pages, which will be described later, and a template file group that is a template for various pages. The resource file is a file such as an HTML file or an image file used for displaying various pages on the client. The template file is referred to from the CGI program, and is a file used for creating various pages to be displayed on the client.

  In order to access the image processing apparatus, a user on the transmission side (desktop computer 102) inputs a URL (Uniform Resource Locator) of the image processing apparatus directly into a web browser on the computer or a link in which the URL is embedded. select. The transmission side web browser transmits an HTTP command designating the URL input by the user to the image processing apparatus via the network. The web server (web server) of the image processing apparatus receives the HTTP command and analyzes the HTTP command. The calling-side web browser performs an operation according to the analysis result. If the request from the calling browser is not a request from the CGI program, the web server (web server) transmits the resource file specified from the resource file group to the calling browser and ends the process. On the other hand, when the request from the calling browser is a request for the CGI program, the web server (web server) activates the corresponding CGI program.

  The CGI program receives a query parameter (query: processing request) when it is activated. As a result, a value designated by the user from the calling browser is passed to the CGI program. The CGI program requests the controller unit 2000 to perform operations such as acquisition and setting of various information and print output in response to a user request. The various types of information include device information related to the paper size and remaining amount of paper that can be used by the image processing apparatus, and function information that indicates functions such as a scan function and a copy function that can be executed by the image processing apparatus. In addition, status information indicating the status of the image processing apparatus during standby or operation, and holding information held by the image processing apparatus are included.

  In addition, the CGI program creates pages to be transmitted to the calling browser by using template files corresponding to various pages displayed on the client. In the template file, there is a part whose description is changed by using the acquired device information, and thereby the contents of the page according to the state at that time are created.

  The transmitting-side web browser formats the page transmitted from the image processing apparatus and displays the page on the display unit to the user. In this way, the user can acquire and set the various types of information of the image processing apparatus from the outside of the image processing apparatus and operate the image processing apparatus by accessing the image processing apparatus using the originating web browser. It becomes possible.

  Information that can be acquired and set by the remote UI includes job information, document information, address information, network setting information, and the like in addition to the device information, function information, and status information as described above. The device information includes, for example, information such as the paper size and the remaining amount of paper that can be used by the image processing apparatus. The function information includes information indicating functions such as a scan function and a copy function that can be executed by the image processing apparatus. The state information includes, for example, information indicating a state such as the standby or operation of the image processing apparatus. For example, the job information includes information indicating the processing date and time of the job input to the image processing apparatus and the number of copies. The document information is information relating to documents stored in a storage device (HDD) of the image processing apparatus, for example. The address information is address information used for communication such as email or facsimile. Further, operations that can be performed by the remote UI include print output and transmission of document information held in the image processing apparatus.

  FIG. 8 shows the top page of the remote UI, which is the default page displayed when the web browser is connected by specifying the IP address of the image device as the URL. The screen is composed of two frames, an index area 3101 and a main area 3102. The main site map is displayed in the index area, and when a button on the map is pressed, a corresponding screen is displayed in the main area. The top page displays general device information. In addition, a device information page, a job status page, a box page, a user mode page, and the like are displayed by pressing a button arranged in the index area. The buttons in the index area include a device button 3104, a job status button 3105, a box button 3106, a user mode button 3107, and a management log button 3109. When the management button 3109 is pressed, a log page as shown in FIG. 16 is displayed in the main area 3102. When the top page return button 3103 is pressed, the top page is displayed. A display language switching pull-down menu 3108 is a pull-down menu for selecting a display language, and when pressed, a display language switching pull-down menu is displayed. When a language is selected from this pull-down menu, the top page of the selected language is displayed.

  Device information page, job status page, box page, user mode page display device equipment and various information, display job status and history, view / edit / print instructions / send documents stored in the device This page is for setting instructions and various device settings. The user can perform various operations through these pages. The log page is a page for displaying device setting change history information, and includes a setting change state and a link to log information managed by the management utility for each setting change.

<Description of management device>
Next, the management apparatus 101 will be described. The management device 101 is an ordinary computer including an input device, an output device, a CPU, a storage device, and the like, and its hardware configuration is well known and will not be described here.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the management apparatus is connected to managed devices such as the image processing apparatuses 110 and 120 via a network. The management apparatus 101 performs communication based on the SNMP (Simple Network Management Protocol) protocol, and collects the status of devices managed at predetermined time intervals. The device status includes, for example, a status such as standby, printing, and error, and status of consumable information such as paper and toner. In addition, an operation for changing the setting value of the image processing apparatus can be performed from the management apparatus. Further, an operation for adding or deleting an application that operates on the image processing apparatus 110 can be performed from the management apparatus.

  The management device functions as a web server. When an HTTP request is received from a web browser operating on the desktop computer 102 or the like, the request is analyzed, the web page data stored in the storage device is read, and a response is transmitted. Upon receiving the response, the web browser formats the received data and displays it on the display unit to indicate to the user. Thus, the user can acquire and set information on each device managed by the management apparatus by accessing the management apparatus using a web browser operating on the desktop computer 102. The management apparatus 101 uses the web server function to acquire information on a managed apparatus (managed apparatus) in response to a request from a web browser and insert the acquired information into a template described in a markup language such as HTML. , Respond in a form that can be displayed in a browser. This example is the screen of FIG. 9 or FIG. Acquisition of information from the management target device can be realized using SNMP. In this case, items of information whose settings can be changed are managed by the MIB. Also, execution of processing such as data processing in response to a request from the web browser can be realized using the above-described CGI.

  FIG. 9 is a page displayed when the web browser 1021 operating on the desktop computer 102 is connected by specifying the IP address of the management apparatus 101. A list of devices managed by the management apparatus 101 is displayed as a list. The devices managed by the management apparatus 101 are apparatuses such as the image processing apparatuses 110 and 120, and are set as management targets. For each management target device, a device name 901, a product name 902, a network interface board name 903, an installation location 904, and a network address 905 are displayed. The device name 901 is a link text, and when the link is selected by the user, various information screens of the selected device are displayed.

  FIG. 10 is an example of a device information screen displayed when the link text of the device name 901 is selected. On this screen, as device-related information, the device name, installation location, administrator information (name, contact information, comments), service representative information (name, contact information, comments), manufacturer Name, product name, product version, etc. are displayed. In this example, the displayed information is information used for management by the administrator of the apparatus, for example, and is referred to as device management information. The device management information may be stored in the management apparatus 101 as HTML data associated with the device. Alternatively, the management apparatus 101 can generate HTML data and send it to the browser whenever requested by the browser based on the device management information associated with the device. In the present embodiment, it is assumed that device management information is stored as in the latter case.

  The information displayed in FIG. 10 is device management information that can be changed via the management apparatus 101. Of course, information other than the exemplified information may be included in the device information. In this example, the device management information does not include operation settings such as print settings and scan settings, but includes information necessary for managing devices. In FIG. 10, a link 1001 is a link to the IP address of the selected device. When the user designates the link 1001, the web browser makes a request by HTTP to the device (for example, the image processing apparatus 110) indicated by the link information, and the remote UI page (FIG. 9) of the device is displayed on the browser. It will be. When the user presses down the change button 1002, a change screen for changing the setting is displayed.

  FIG. 11 shows an example of a change screen. Fields 1101 to 1108 are text input fields that allow the user to input setting items such as device name, installation location, and administrator information. Since the manufacturer and product name version are information determined by the manufacturer, they are not subject to change in this example. When the OK button 1109 is pressed, an HTTP request is sent from the browser 1021 to the management apparatus 101 requesting that the value input in each text input field 1101-1108 be set in the device. When the management apparatus 101 receives the request, the management utility 1012 analyzes the request and performs a setting change operation on the corresponding device. The setting change operation is performed by transmitting a command using SNMP or a command using a dedicated protocol from the management apparatus to the device. When the cancel button 1110 is pressed, the screen returns to the screen shown in FIG.

  In this example, the page for viewing / setting device information has been taken as an example, but other pages for viewing the status and history information of jobs running on the device, pages for displaying management logs, and devices It also provides a page for adding applications.

<Operation by management device>
Next, details of the operation when the web server of the management apparatus receives an operation request from the user will be described based on the flowchart shown in FIG. This processing is executed by the management utility 1012 that has received a processing request through the web server 1011. The procedure of FIG. 12 is a processing procedure when a device management information is acquired from a device and a change request for the device management information is received.

  In step S1201, a request from the user (web browser) is received. In step S1202, it is determined whether the user operation is a setting change request for the device. The setting change request for the device is transmitted in response to pressing of the OK button 1109 in FIG. If it is not a setting change request for the device, the process advances to step S1207 to end the process.

  If the request is a setting change request for a device, the process advances to step S1203 to execute a setting change operation for the device. The setting change for the device is performed by transmitting the setting value sent from the web browser to the device using an SNMP command or a command based on a dedicated protocol. In step S1204, the changed setting contents are generated as an HTML file and stored in the storage unit of the management apparatus. The generated HTML file is log information indicating a change history of device management information. An HTML file describing the contents of change is automatically generated by embedding information such as the date and time of change processing, the information of the user who made the change, and details of the change in the template file stored in advance in the management device. To do. This HTML file has contents corresponding to the display illustrated in FIG. 10 by the browser. The HTML file is a link destination based on link information associated with the device name in the device list illustrated in FIG. Alternatively, the device setting may be configured such that when a change request is made, a page for inputting the change content is displayed and the user inputs the change content.

  FIG. 13 is a screen example in which the HTML file generated in step S1204 is displayed on the browser. An update date 1301 and a detailed change description 1302 for the management target device (device A) are included. In the example of FIG. 13, the link 1302a to the device A is also included in the title of the description 1302 of the change content.

  In step S1205, a URL for providing the stored HTML file to the outside by the web server function of the management apparatus is generated. For example, the URL is created based on the domain name of the web server in which the HTML file is stored, the folder in which the file is stored, and the HTML file name. In step S1206, a link request is transmitted to the device. In response to this link request, the managed device describes information such as text described in the link request and a link to the log information provided by the management apparatus 101 in the HTML file provided by the web server 203. . The log information is the HTML file generated in step S1204. Details of the link request will be described later.

  Here, the process in step S1204 will be described. In step S1204, the changed setting content, that is, the changed device management information is edited in the HTML format. For this purpose, for example, the item name (installation location, etc.) of each item of the device management information is described in association with the value of each item. The association is made by, for example, describing the item name and the item value in parallel on the same line. That is, the name of each item shown in FIG. 10 and the corresponding value can be duplicated and used as log information. In addition, it is desirable to include the operator ID and time, the client terminal ID and address, and the like in the log information.

  In step S1206, the summary information to be transmitted to the device and the URL created in step S1205 are transmitted to the device. As this summary information, log information may be copied. Further, for example, a message indicating that a setting change has occurred in the device management information may be used. Further, the date and time of change may be included in the summary information. For example, a list of changed item names may be shown. The summary information may include the changed operator ID. These pieces of information are converted into text and written in the summary information.

<Details of link request>
Next, details of the link request will be described. The format of the link request is the same format as the trackback in a web blog (or blog) that has been widely used recently. The link request is made by transmitting an HTTP POST request as shown in FIG. 14 to the device. A URL 1401 is a URL provided for the device to receive a link request. The management apparatus 101 acquires this URL from the link request destination device using a protocol such as SNMP. The data type 1402 is a data type specification, and always specifies “application / x-www-form-urlencoded”. A title 1403 is a title of a link generated on the device side. In FIG. 14, “change by management utility” is designated as the title. A URL 1404 is a URL generated in step S1205 and serves as link information to the log information generated in step S1204. Summary information 1405 is summary information that describes the contents of the linked web page. The character string 1403 and the character string 1405 may be set in the management apparatus in advance, or input from the user may be accepted during a setting change operation. Further, as described in step S1206, the character string 1405 can be automatically generated by converting predetermined setting information, operation, and information related to the operator into text.

<Details of device side link request reception>
Next, processing when the device receives a link request from the management apparatus 101 will be described based on the flowchart shown in FIG. In step S1501, it waits to receive a link request. Whether or not it is a link request is determined based on whether or not the URL of the received HTTP request is a URL for receiving a link request. When the link request is received, the process proceeds to step S1502, and the link request is analyzed. Since the link request is an HTTP POST request in the format shown in FIG. 14, the link destination URL 1404, the link title 1403, and the link summary information 1405 are analyzed. A link is generated based on the request analyzed in step S1503. The link is generated by writing to a resource file stored in the HD 2004 of the image processing apparatus. For example, when the link request shown in FIG. 14 is received, a link is generated by writing the following description.
“<a href="http://management_server.example.com/pageid1">
Changes made by the management utility </a> Settings changed from the management utility. Check the link for details. That is, the URL 1404 associated with the link request is added to the <a href=> tag and associated as link information of the title character string. After the title is broken, a summary string is added.

  The above link request reception processing is executed by the web server module 203 incorporating a log manager. For example, if the web server has a web blog function, the processing of FIG. 15 can be realized by the web server alone. In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2, the log manager 250 and the web server 203 are shown separately. FIG. 16A is an example of a page that displays a management log of a device's remote UI, and includes a link generated by a link request. The link 1601 is a character string to which a link generated based on the link request received from the management apparatus is attached. The link character string 1601 is based on the title character string 1403 included in the link request. This character string is a link to the URL 1404 included in the link request, and when selected by the user, the corresponding page (FIG. 13) of the web page of the management apparatus is displayed on the browser. The character string 1602 is based on the summary character string 1405 included in the link request.

  FIG. 16B shows another example. In this example, the title row 1611 displays the update date in addition to the title character string with the hyperlink. The update date is data received as part of the title character string of the link request. The summary character string column 1612 includes the changed item name in addition to the fixed character string. Further, in FIG. 16B, the device log information added in response to the link request is accumulated and displayed in time series. Therefore, past device log information 1613 is also displayed. For example, device log information outside the window can be displayed by operating the vertical scroll bar.

  By the process described above, a link to information recorded in the management apparatus is automatically generated on the remote UI web page provided by the image processing apparatus as the managed apparatus, so that the user can easily browse the information. Become.

[Second Embodiment]
Next, an embodiment in which an application is dynamically added to the image processing apparatus will be described. As described above, the JAVA (registered trademark) VM 230 included in the image processing apparatus receives, manages, and executes a file of an additional application. The additional application is written in the Java (registered trademark) language, and can perform various processes by operating a printer or a scanner of the image processing apparatus using various class libraries. The additional application is installed / uninstalled in response to a request from the management apparatus 101. In the present embodiment, description of the hardware configuration and software configuration common to the first embodiment is omitted.

  FIG. 17 is a screen displayed by the management apparatus 101 when an application is installed from the management apparatus 101 to the image processing apparatus 102. An application selection button 1701 is a button for selecting an application file to be installed. When this button is pressed, an OS standard file selection dialog is displayed. The user can select an application to be installed from the dialog. The application file path field 1702 displays the path of the application file selected by the user.

  A manual file selection button 1703 is a button for selecting a manual file of an application to be installed. When this button is pressed, an OS standard file selection dialog is displayed. The user can select a manual file to install from the dialog. The manual file path column 1704 displays the path of the manual file selected by the user.

  An OK button 1705 is a button for executing installation of an application file and a manual file selected by the user. A cancel button 1706 is a button for canceling without performing the installation process.

  Next, details of the operation when the management apparatus 101 receives an application installation request for the device (image processing apparatus) from the user will be described based on the flowchart shown in FIG. In step S1801, a request from the user is received. In step S1802, it is determined whether the user operation is an application installation request for the device (pressing of an OK button 1705). If it is not an application installation request for the device, the process advances to step S1807 to end the process. If it is an application installation request for the device, the process advances to step S1803 to transmit the application file selected in the field 1702 to the device. The device receives it and performs the installation. That is, the Java (registered trademark) VM 230 of the image processing apparatus receives, manages, and executes the application file. In step S1804, the manual file is stored in the storage unit of the management apparatus 101. The manual file is not installed in the image processing apparatus but is stored in the storage unit of the management apparatus 101. In step S1805, a URL specifying the storage location and file name is generated so that the stored manual file can be called from the web server function of the management apparatus. In step S1806, a link request describing the URL as the link destination URL 1404 is transmitted to the device. The title character string is, for example, the name of an installed application program. In addition, a character string “user manual” may be fixedly included in the link information as summary information. Further, for example, version information of the application, installation date and time, etc. may be acquired and included in the summary information.

  The operation of the device that has received the link request is the same as that shown in FIG. 12, and automatically generates a link to the manual stored in the management apparatus.

  FIG. 19 is an example of an additional application management page provided by the remote UI of the image processing apparatus. Links 1901 and 1902 are links generated based on the link request received from the management apparatus 101. The link is associated with the application name string. When a character string of an application name is selected by the user, a file (manual file) indicated by link information associated with the character string is referred to. Then, the manual file stored in the storage device of the management apparatus 101 specified by the link information is transmitted to the browser and displayed on the browser.

  With the above operation, the manual file is stored in the storage unit of the management apparatus 101. In the device web application, a link to the manual held in the management apparatus 101 is automatically generated, so that a wealth of information can be provided without squeezing the storage capacity on the device side.

  Contrary to the description so far, the image processing apparatus may transmit a link request to the management apparatus 101, and the management apparatus 101 may generate a link.

  Further, the present invention can be applied to a system (for example, a copier, a facsimile machine, etc.) consisting of a single device even when applied to a system composed of a plurality of devices (for example, a host computer, interface device, reader, printer, etc.) You may apply. Another object of the present invention is to supply a recording medium recording a program code for realizing the functions of the above-described embodiments to a system or apparatus, and the system or apparatus computer reads out and executes the program code stored in the storage medium. Is also achieved. In this case, the program code itself read from the storage medium realizes the functions of the above-described embodiments, and the program code itself and the storage medium storing the program code constitute the present invention.

  Further, according to the present invention, the operating system (OS) running on the computer performs part or all of the actual processing based on the instruction of the program code, and the functions of the above-described embodiments are realized by the processing. This is also included. Furthermore, the present invention is also applied to the case where the program code read from the storage medium is written into a memory provided in a function expansion card inserted into the computer or a function expansion unit connected to the computer. In that case, based on the instruction of the written program code, the CPU of the function expansion card or the function expansion unit performs part or all of the actual processing, and the functions of the above-described embodiments are realized by the processing. .

1 is a block diagram showing an overall configuration of an image processing system according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the software performed with an image processing apparatus. It is a block diagram which shows the hardware constitutions of an image processing apparatus. It is a perspective view which shows the external appearance of an image processing apparatus. It is a top view which shows the structure of the operation part of an image processing apparatus. It is a block diagram which shows the internal structure of the operation part and operation part I / F of an image processing apparatus corresponding to the internal structure of a control unit. It is a figure which shows an example of the standard operation screen displayed on the operation part of an image processing apparatus. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of a screen displayed on a web browser when a remote UI function provided by an image processing apparatus is accessed. It is a figure which shows an example of the top screen displayed on a web browser, when accessing the web server function of a management apparatus. It is a figure which shows an example of the device information screen which the web server function of a management apparatus provides. It is a figure which shows an example of the device information change screen which the web server function of a management apparatus provides. It is a flowchart which shows the process sequence of the management apparatus when the operation request from a user is received. It is a figure which shows an example of the screen which displayed the HTML file showing the change content produced | generated with the management apparatus with the browser. It is a figure which shows an example of a link request. It is a flowchart which shows the process sequence of the image processing apparatus which received the link request | requirement. It is a figure which shows the page containing the link produced | generated based on the link request | requirement. It is a figure which shows an example of the screen which a management apparatus displays in order to add an application from a management apparatus to an image processing apparatus. It is a flowchart which shows the process sequence of the management apparatus when an application installation request is received. It is a figure which shows the page containing the link produced | generated based on the link request | requirement.

Claims (13)

Executed by a computer connected to a management target device having a function of recording document information including link information for a specified link destination in response to a link request and a web server function of providing the document information to a web client. A program
Recording means for recording information related to the managed device;
Web server means for providing said information to a web client;
A program that causes a computer to function as a transmission unit that transmits a link request for information related to the management target device recorded by the recording unit to the management target device.   The program according to claim 1, wherein the information related to the management target device is history information of settings made for the management target device. Further causing the computer to function as summary generation means for generating summary information of settings made for the managed device,
The transmission means transmits the location information for specifying the location of the history information recorded by the recording means and the summary information generated by the summary generation means to the device as accompanying information of the link request. The program according to claim 2, wherein:   The summary information includes at least one of a predetermined character string, a date on which the setting is performed, a content of the setting, an identifier of a setting operator, or an identifier of a terminal on which the setting operation is performed. The program according to claim 3, comprising:   The program according to claim 1, wherein the information related to the management target device is manual data of an application installed on the management target device.   The program according to claim 1, wherein the link request is a trackback request. A device management apparatus connected to a management target device having a function of recording document information including link information for a designated link destination in response to a link request and a web server function of providing the document information to a web client There,
Recording means for recording information related to the managed device;
Web server means for providing said information to a web client;
A device management apparatus comprising: a transmission unit configured to transmit a link request for information related to the management target device recorded by the recording unit to the management target device.   The device management apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the link request is a trackback request. A network peripheral device connected to a management device having a function of recording document information including link information for a specified link destination in response to a link request and a web server function of providing the document information to a web client. And
Recording means for recording information related to the management device;
Web server means for providing said information to a web client;
A network peripheral device comprising: a transmission unit that transmits a link request for information related to the management device recorded by the recording unit to the management device. A management device according to claim 7;
An image processing apparatus as a management target device;
A device management system characterized by connecting a client terminal equipped with a web browser via a network. In a device management apparatus connected to a management target device having a function of recording document information including link information for a specified link destination in response to a link request, and a web server function of providing the document information to a web client A device management method comprising:
A recording step of recording information related to the management target device by a recording unit;
A web server step of providing the information to a web client by means of a web server;
A device management method comprising: a transmission step of transmitting a link request for information related to the management target device recorded by the recording unit to the management target device by a transmission unit. A method for managing a managed device having a web server function for providing document information to a web client,
A recording step of recording information related to the management target device by a recording unit;
A web server step of providing the information to a web client by means of a web server;
A transmission step of transmitting a link request for information related to the management target device recorded by the recording unit to the management target device by a transmission unit;
Recording document information including link information for a specified link destination in response to the link request transmitted by the transmission step by the management target device so as to be provided by a web server;
A device management method comprising:   The device management method according to claim 11 or 12, wherein the link request is a trackback request.

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